An actual title fight between the late Muhammad Ali and one of his daughter is happening in 2022. But it is not what most think it is.
Muhammad Ali’s daughter, former women’s boxing champ Lalia Ali, was prevented from registering her name by the company that owns her late father’s likeness.
Authentic Brands Group holds the rights to the Ali trademark, which includes all things associated with the greatest boxer of all time. The ownership of the Ali name came through a deal done by Muhammad Ali back in 2006 for $50 million. Now, ABG filed a Notice of Opposition against Lalia, who wanted to trademark her name.
United States Patent and Trademark Office states that a Notice of Opposition is a legal proceeding in which opposing attorneys can list why a new applicant’s trademark registration is considered harmful to its client’s brand.
Josh Gerben, founder of Washington trademark law firm Gerben Law, broke down ABG’s complaint on Twitter.
He tweeted, “An unexpected trademark fight has broken out between a legendary boxer and his daughter. The company that owns Muhammad Ali’s trademarks is opposing an attempt by his daughter to register her name, Laila Ali. Why on earth is this happening?”
Authentic Brands Group has cited three listed complaints against Laila, including False Connection, Likelihood of Confusion, and Dilution by Tarnishment.
In short, ABG is concerned Laila Ali boxing trademark is too similar to her father’s and people would be confused about which products and goods are affiliated with whom. This branding confusion will tarnish the ABG’s reputation, according to the company.
Laila Ali, whose net worth is $10 million, is the eighth child of his nine children. Her father lost his long battle with Parkinson’s disease in 2016 at age 74.
“I personally have been sad for a long time,” she said. “It’s not easy, it wasn’t easy, to watch him suffer.”
Laila boxed professionally from 1999 to 2007. She is also an actress and a television personality.
Muhammad Ali was survived by his seven daughters and two sons.
A similar situation occurred when ABG filed a Notice Of Opposition against Shaq’s son, Shaqir O’Neal. ABG also owns his father’s likeness and stopped Shaqir from trademarking his name. Shaquille O’Neal himself is the second-largest shareholder in ABG, which owns trademark rights to many celebrities, including Michael Jackson.
